CBPP Analysis Concludes Wisconsin Would Have Lost 39% of Its Medicaid Funding in 2010

A paper released today by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) asks the question: what would have been the effect if Chairman Ryan’s budget plan, including the Medicaid block grant, had been in effect from 2001 through 2010. The CBPP analysis concludes that federal Medicaid funding for states would have declined by 31% during that period. But that’s just the average, as the cut grew from 19% in 2001 to 37% in 2010.

The Center’s paper also provides state-by-state estimates of the impact of putting the block grant plan into effect in 2001. It concludes that the effect would have been even larger in Wisconsin, with the reduction in federal aid growing to 39% in 2010. The total loss for Wisconsin over the 10-year period would have been about $1.53 billion.Looking prospectively at the effect on Medicaid participation of Ryan’s Medicaid proposals, which have been approved by the House, the CBPP report references another study:

“…the Urban Institute estimated that the similar Medicaid block grant in last year’s House budget plan would cause states to shrink the number of low-income people receiving health coverage through Medicaid by between 14 million and 27 million people by 2021, which would constitute an enrollment reduction of 23 percent to 46 percent (in addition to the 17 million people who would not gain Medicaid coverage due to the repeal of the ACA’s Medicaid expansion).”

As the report notes, there would also be effects on access to care for people who remain in Medicaid, because the block grant would result in a steep drop in Medicaid reimbursement rates.

Jon Peacock